McFaul reminds readers that not all Russians agreed with the changes initiated under Gorbachev. "Russia, its society and elites were divided about what they wanted post-Communism, and it's easy to forget that a good half of the population and a good half of the elites didn't want this revolution," McFaul says.

In fact, it's entirely possible that the revolution might never have happened, he explains, emphasizing the importance of contingency in politics. The August 1991 coup attempt by the military "was a lot closer to succeeding than we thought," for instance. If things had gone the other way, Russia would not have become democratic.

Some argue that it still is not ­ that Russia hasn't made the kind of progress needed to join international clubs such as NATO or the European Union. McFaul understands this point and in some ways agrees. Yet all revolutions take time, he says. He points to a very American case-in-point: Ten years after the beginning of the American War of Independence, the United States still had no constitution.

Even now, McFaul says, he has his share of KGB types keeping tabs on him. That's not unusual, according to Blacker. "Intelligence is about other things than black ops, skullduggery and turning agents. It's about gathering information," Blacker says. "They would know that Mike was deeply knowledgeable about things going on inside the country, so they'd be eager to talk to him."

But they must find it hard to keep up with someone who has divided his time between Russia, Washington, D.C., and Stanford. After three years as a senior associate at a Washington-based think tank, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace ­ where he set up a Moscow office that now employs 35 Russian scholars and policy analysts ­ McFaul is now back in the swing of things on the Farm (Virginia Farm). His upcoming course on revolutions is bound to be filled not only with topics of the day ­ he's planning to include a unit on Afghanistan ­ but with examples from McFaul's own experience as a fellow-traveler in this new Russian revolution.